An all-star, one of baseball’s most
pleasant surprises for four months, Marquis has raised at least a
morsel of doubt regarding his playoff rotation spot . . . If, as expected, the Rockies reach the
postseason, they must configure their rotation. As it stands, the only
lock is Ubaldo Jimenez for the Oct. 7 opener, followed closely by Jorge
De La Rosa, Marquis, Jason Hammel and Aaron Cook. Only four starters
would be necessary, leaving Cook an X-factor to wedge himself back in
with a strong showing Friday. A rotation without Marquis seems a
longshot but can no longer be dismissed out of hand.

Marquis has gotten used to being left out of the mix in the postseason. Early in his career it was because he was the least-essential pitcher on the Atlanta Braves. More recently, it’s because he’s posted poor second halves, not unlike the one he has going on this year. He’s the bizarro Adam LaRoche, really.

If the postseason started today, the Rockies would face the Cardinals. Marquis has faced St. Louis once this year, and pitched well. He’s done pretty decently against them overall in his career, posting a 9-7 record and a 3.80 ERA. My guess is that he’s in the rotation, but the very fact that reasonable people are suggesting he might not be bodes ill for the Rockies’ chances once the playoffs start.